INTRODUCTION
I. The Gospel story points us to one of the main works of Jesus
– something we are called to do-
Breaking down barriers that divided the human family.
Some of these barriers are very real today.
II. First Barrier – was a Racial Barrier.
This woman was a Samaritan – Samaritans were
regarded as an inferior race; scum of the earth. Jews had
no respect for them; only distrust.
Jesus walked right through the Barrier like it did not
exist. He saw a person made in the image of God.
Centuries of History said they were adversaries. But
Jesus paid no attention.
She was a Human being hurting and needing some
help.
That’s all He saw!
III. The Second Barrier – was a Social Barrier.
He was talking to a woman – they could not believe it.
This was an extremely male dominated society. Women
were definitely 2nd
class citizens and worse.
To Jesus – Each and every person was important. He
shared some of his deepest spiritual insights with women;
this woman was important to Him.
IV. The Third & Final Barrier – was the Barrier of Religion
People were fighting over where the proper place of
worship was supposed to be. My mountain versus your
mountain; my temple is better than yours.
A Religious Tug a War!
This battle was not bringing people closer together. Jesus
emphasized that no one has exclusive claim to God – God
cannot be contained in one place or controlled by a group
of people. We cannot box up God in any one set of
Doctrines.
With Jesus the important thing was not where or so much
how you worship. But does worship connect to our
hearts?
V. In Closing –
If we really want to follow Jesus – if we want to be the
church, we need to ask ourselves some hard questions
regarding these barriers that Jesus tried so hard to break
down.
1. Do we label people – this or that because of their
nationality or skin color. Because they speak a
different language. Because they are not like us –
labels that prevent us from getting to know them as
human beings.
2. A good question for us to ask as Church – Do we still
treat women as second-class citizens?
3. Do we use our religious beliefs as a club to beat up
other religions?
4. What barriers do we need to break down right now in
our families, in this parish that are dividing us?
May our prayer this week – be this:
Lord, give us the courage to look at what divides us and the
strength to do something about these Barriers with your help.
AMEN.
Archive for the ‘3rd Sunday’ Category
Breaking Down Barriers 3-12-2023
Thursday, March 2nd, 2023The First Disciples of Jesus 1-22-2023
Thursday, January 19th, 2023The time was now. Jesus decided he was ready to choose his
twelve apostles. Just advertising in the newspapers didn’t seem
thorough enough. So Jesus decided to hold an Olympics from which the
twelve would be chosen. The people came from all over. The
competition was fierce. Jesus had to judge all the events.
First came the prayer event. People had practiced and it showed in
the speed with which they could recite the words. Some articulated the
words with utmost precision. Some used big impressive words. Still
others expressed lofty ideas. But when it came time for a winner to be
selected, Jesus chose none. There didn’t seem to be any heart in their
prayers. They were just words.
Second came the worship event. These contestants, too, had done
their homework. Some wore beautiful garments. Some used lots of
incense. Some emphasized music. Others incorporated gestures. But
again, when it was selection time, there was no winner. There didn’t
seem to be any heart in worship. It was too showy.
Third came the teaching event. This was a prepared group. Some
came with elaborate posters. Some came with long, well ordered talks.
Some came with DVD players. Others came with their small groups to
demonstrate process. Again, no winners. There was no heart in
teaching. The methods seemed more important.
So, the Olympics ended. No winners, no apostles. Exhausted after
his long exasperating ordeal, Jesus went down to the lake to cool off and
relax. Then the miracle happened. He saw people fishing. Now there
were some people who put their hearts into what they were about. So he
chose them!
Remember… the first disciples of Jesus were ordinary people.
They weren’t great public speakers, scholars, kings or saints. They
weren’t presidents, theologians or ordained ministers. They were
fishermen. A tax collector. Common field workers. Who, by God’s
power, and their openness, made great things happen! What about us –
Could great things happen through us? Yes — By God’s Power and Our
Openness!
Remember You Always Walk With God 12-11-2022
Friday, December 9th, 2022A few weeks before Christmas, a woman who lived in a New York
apartment building found a greeting card taped to her door. “Merry
Christmas from the custodial staff”, it said.
“How nice”, she said to herself and promptly forgot about it. A
week later she came home to find another card taped to her door. It was
the same message, “Merry Christmas from the custodial staff”. But this
time stamped right in the middle in big red letters, were the words,
“Second Notice”!
Many of us are terribly forgetful. We immerse ourselves in our
daily tasks of life as we must-we can forget almost anything: birthdays,
anniversaries, appointments, our bank balance, our glasses. You name
it, we forget it. We make lists so we won’t forget and then we forget the
list. But our forgetfulness isn’t limited just to the little things. We
forget the big things as well; who our real friends are, what really
matters in life, who loves us, who needs us, what we were made for. We
just forget.
I believe that is why we need to gather here – week after week; to
help each other remember who we are, remember what really matters,
and remember that we aren’t walking this long road alone. We’re
walking it with the Lord who is right at our side.
And what is this Lord like who walks at our side? Does God walk
with us as a critic? A police officer? A judge? Or maybe just an
impartial observer? In fact the Lord is none of the above.
The Lord walks with us as a partner and mentor who wants to see
us succeed and who understands that it’s going to take us a while. Now
what more could we ask? How can we not celebrate and rejoice as
today’s liturgy urges us. How can we not be confident and hopeful and
put all fears behind us. After all, God is with us and for us!
And there’s still more. Having God walking with us as partner and
mentor gives us the opportunity to be in close conversation hourly. With
simple words like, “Well, Lord, what do you think about this?” Or,
“Lord can you help me see this clearly?” Or simply, “Help, Lord, I can’t
do this one alone.” Those are the kinds of words that partners and
friends speak very often.
All of that is what we have to come together here to remember.
First, remember to rejoice and forget all your fears because God is with
us. And second, remember to listen to and talk to God about the real
stuff of our lives because God cares more than anyone else…and God
knows the way home.
I would like to close by sharing with you my idea of what God’s
special Christmas card would say to each one of us;
“Remember what you’ve seen me do”, says Jesus. “…the blind
see, cripples walk, lepers are cured, the deaf hear, and dead men raised
to life”. If you’ll let me, I’ll do the same for you”, he says. “I’ll heal
what is sick in your spirit, if you’ll let me”.
“I’ll open your eyes and your ears so that you’ll know what really
matters so you’ll know that happiness and peace are available to you
everyday, even on the worst days. I’ll show you that and let you
experience that, if you’ll let me.
“I will not insulate you from adversity, challenge, or pain. But I
will always see you through them, and never let you come to ultimate 4
harm. I’ll take you by the hand, and raise you up; I’ll help you to walk
and I’ll walk with you until your journey is complete, if you’ll let me.
“All that is my promise to you, my solemn pledge. And I will not
take it back”, says the Lord. We have a lot to rejoice about today!
Don’t we!
